Swelling patriotism meets haunting solemnity on the soundtrack to Clint Eastwood's directorial masterpiece about the iconic flag-raisers of Iwo Jima. In addition to earning him a Golden Globe nomination for the score of his film Million Dollar Baby, the actor/director's lifelong love of jazz and keen ability as a composer have traditionally made the soundtracks to his films musical events in themselves, and this collection is no exception. The score itself is a perfect blend of reflective but simple piano melodies, swelling strings, and muffled military drums. Eastwood also makes inspired choices of vintage '40s music, ranging from Dinah Shore's "I'll Walk Alone" to uplifting pro-America anthems by Irving Berlin and Sammy Cahn/Jule Styne and an Artie Shaw piece. And what would a combat-filled film be without a few John Philip Sousa numbers? Eastwood's son, popular jazz bassist Kyle Eastwood, co-composes and performs "Knock Knock," an original Django Reinhardt-flavored piece that sounds like it could have been written in the big-band era. Putting as much care into the soundtrack as he did into the details of the film, Eastwood conjures up the many conflicting emotions of the WWII era. ~ Jonathan Widran